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Markowitz Calls For Bike Lanes To Be Relocated To The Sky
By
John Del Signore
Published May 24, 2011
Modified May 25, 2011
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By
John Del Signore
Published May 24, 2011
Modified May 25, 2011
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Buried at the bottom of an article on a fanciful series of conceptual designs for "Downtown Brooklyn Commons Project," you'll find quite a gem from the hyperbolic treasure chest of Brooklyn Borough Clown-In-Chief Marty Markowitz. You'll recall that Markowitz can't stand the DOT's expansion of bike lanes throughout "his" borough, and he's previously sung songs mocking bike lanes, and branded DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan a "zealot." But Markowitz's new solution to the city's endless bike lane wars may be just the thing to forge a truce between the warring factions!
"Elevated bike lanes — that’s the answer," Markowitz the Visionary tells the Brooklyn Paper. Truly, King Solomon himself could not have adjudicated more wisely! This is an elegant solution which would return the roads to their rightful owners (cars) while keeping cyclists out of harm's way (unless they slip). Markowitz's comment—which is a joke like pretty much everything else that comes out of his mouth—was made in an interview about the Brooklyn Commons Project, which enlisted students from local colleges to imaginatively redesign plazas and parkland from Borough Hall to the Brooklyn Bridge. This is actually a pretty fun academic exercise; Brownstoner has photos of the designs, which are currently on display in Brooklyn Borough Hall.
Asked about Markowitz's cycling skyway scheme, Michael Murphy, a spokesman for Transportation Alternatives, asked, "When we can create safe space on our streets for bicyclists, drivers and pedestrians now with minimal disruption, why on earth would we pursue an expensive, unsafe boondoggle like elevated lanes?"
Tagged
bike lanes
marty markowitz
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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